There have been a steady parade of prospective point guards for the Charlotte Bobcats since Larry Brown, a point guard of some notoriety himself, took over as the team's head coach in 2008.

Raymond Felton was there when Brown arrived. And most recently, there have been Sherron Collins and Shaun Livingston. Even forward Boris Diaw played point guard in the Bobcats' exhibition game this season against the Hornets.

And there was D.J. Augustin, the New Orleans native who played at Brother Martin High School pre-Katrina, whom Brown drafted shortly after he arrived as Charlotte's head coach.

Augustin has beaten back the challenges of every point guard the Bobcats have put against him, and when Felton went to the New York Knicks in free agency this summer, Augustin seized the opportunity to make the position his.

Now, he stands alone.

On Wednesday night against the Hornets, Augustin returned to the Crescent City as an entrenched starter at the position, playing for one of the most demanding coaches the game has known.

"He's a tough coach," Augustin said of Brown, whose professional career as a point guard began here in 1967 when he helped lead the ABA's New Orleans Buccaneers to the league's first Finals series against the Pittsburgh Pipers (the Bucs lost in seven games). "He's tough on point guards because he feels we pretty much should know everything about the game, and pretty much be an extension of him on the court. So it has been tough these last three years, but now I'm starting to get it and understand what he's saying."

Brown, a soft-spoken, gee-whiz persona, has heard that before.

"Everybody says I'm tough on point guards," Brown said Wednesday, "but the point guards I've had have been pretty damn good and pretty damn successful. I think every coach is demanding of the point guard. It's like a quarterback in football or a catcher or shortstop in baseball. They kind of run the team and dictate what the coaches want.

"I probably expect more. But I don't think I'm unusual as a coach. Coaches look at point guards as an extension of themselves."

And in Augustin, 6 feet, 180 pounds, Brown not only has found a point guard he can almost look squarely in the eye, but a youngster who has been receptive to his play-the-game-the-right-way message, along the way embracing the opportunity to learn from one of the game's most trusted professors.

"He's a great teacher," Augustin said. "He teaches you the game. I've heard stories about how when guys leave him, they realize how great he was to be around. I'm just trying to learn everything I can from him."

Augustin and Felton shared point-guard duties during Augustin's rookie season, but Augustin's progress in his second year was slowed by a nagging abdominal injury that limited offseason training and bothered him throughout last season.

This past summer, Brown said, Augustin was healthy and therefore able to concentrate on offseason workouts aimed at improving.

And even though the Bobcats brought in Collins and Livingston before this season to challenge for minutes at the point, Augustin responded and won his coach's confidence.

"He's a great kid, he's a great teammate," said Brown. "He tries to do what you ask. And he's just getting better."

Wednesday night's game was also a homecoming for Baton Rouge native Tyrus Thomas, who, as Augustin, had quite a familial backing among those in attendance.

But Augustin, who admitted his cheering section would be loud Ñ "A lot of people have bought their own tickets, but I'm trying to get about 20 extra" Ñ said he'd still be able to hear Brown's pointed instructions, and critiques, over the din.

"We communicate to make sure I know what's going on on the floor so I can help my teammates and just be an extension of him on the floor," said Augustin, who said he takes Brown's sometimes critical assessments in the spirit in which they are intended. "I mean, that's coaching. We've all got to be able to take criticism. It just makes you better."

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Jimmy Smith can be reached at jsmith@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3814.